State Department’s recent travel advisory rankles Tijuana mayor

Deported Mexican prisoners from U.S. blamed for crime uptick

The U.S. State Department has just issued its most recent advisory for U.S. citizens contemplating travel to Baja California, prompting an angry response from Tijuana mayor Carlos Bustamante.

The advisory, issued on Friday, July 12, paints a relatively alarming picture of travel in Mexico, and has this specifically to say about Baja California:

“Baja California (north): Tijuana, Ensenada and Mexicali are major cities/travel destinations in the state of Baja California…. You should exercise caution in the northern state of Baja California, particularly at night. There were 278 homicides in Tijuana from January to June 2013. Mexicali’s murder rate has climbed from 14.3 per 100,000 in 2011 to 15.8 per 100,000 in 2012.

“In the majority of these cases, the killings appeared to be targeted TCO (Transnational Criminal Organizations) assassinations. Turf battles between criminal groups resulted in some assassinations in areas of Tijuana and Mexicali frequented by U.S. citizens. Shooting incidents, in which innocent bystanders have been injured, have occurred during daylight hours."

In an interview published in El Sol de Tijuana on July 16, Mayor Bustamante, without saying who, said he had been advised before the alert was issued to not let it bother him.

"How can this not bother me, because it is not Tijuana's fault, it is the fault of the deportacións of you who are cleaning out your prisons," the mayor said.

According to data provided by the Tijuana’s secretary of public safety, between January and June, 7000 people have been deported to Tijuana from U.S. prisons, El Sol reported. Many of the deportees end up being re-arrested in Tijuana for murder and drug-trafficking, while others are held for U.S. authorities on still-outstanding warrants in the U.S.

It's easy, said the mayor, for U.S. authorities to blame Tijuana for a problem the U.S. let loose on the city.

Comments

Heres the cold reality Sr. Bustamante. We don't deport americans or any other nationalities into your country. Unless I'm sadly mistaken and misinformed, we deport Mexicans into Mexico. After they've come to this country of their own will and broken our laws they first serve time and then, guess what? We send them back to Mexico. Would you prefer that we keep on spending american dollars and take them to their respective homes? Don't think so buddy. If you really feel the need to place blame, blame it on your sad economy that is caused by politicos (politicians) and other people in power that have been sacking your country clean for countless years thus leaving your poor and hopeless citizens no other choice but to come to the "Land of Opportunity". Until your country decides to play just as mean and dirty as the cartels do, you're going to have this problem. I'm not saying that the U.S. has a complete handle on crime ' because we're far from it. Yes, ours is the market that demands your wares thus guaranteeing the flow will continue as long as the demand is there. Change comes from within Lic. Bustamante.

Here is the REAL reality Mr. FatCat.
Im an American who's lived in TJ for the last 9 years.
This is based on my experience, what I hear & see everyday.
I’ve been to 26, of 32 Mexican states, & several countries in Central America. I‘ve seen the reality.
Not only Mexicans seek a better life in the USA, from Patagonia, to Tijuana, most people live below the poverty line, by their countries standards, far below the US standards. So if you have spend $2-4 thousand (US DOLLARS) or more
Central & S. Americans pay $10-$15000 or more! (the average Mexican makes $3 USD a day, & thats better than most countries)
When you have spend, $2,000, or more to go to the US,
cause your entire family lives in 1 room, in a town, in a state without jobs. Where the local store has less food for the whole town that the 7-11 at the end of your block.
This reality is very common
I understand this isn't the point of the discussion, they broke they law, ok. (we ALL know how smart the lawmakers are)
In many cases the entire family has saved for years, to send 1 person so they can work & send money back.
When the police arrest someone, how do they know where they are from? So you get caught, & are from, Panama, & Immigration asks you "where are you from?".
you can say Panama, & get sent 5000 miles away (from San Diego only), or say Mexico, & get send 10 miles)
THAT IS THE REALITY, people from all over latin america say they are from Mexico, for the simple fact that they don't want to go back, they THINK, crossing back is easy.
but the new border wall, the cartels raping, torturing, kidnaping, & the Mexican police all take advantage of them.
They have no ID, they cant get jobs
(believe it or not, Mexico is very strict on immigration, as they have few jobs, & everyone on their way to the US come thru Mexico)
ANOTHER little reported fact 40% of ALL Mexicans deported are sent to Tijuana, with nothing.
if you are from 4000 miles south of the border, but still in Mexico
You could end up in TJ.
This isn’t a issue for 1 country, it’s and issue for humanity.
People don't know that Tijuana isn't easy to cross anymore, or the cartels control the desert crossings.
The US looks for the quickest way to get them out of our system, the Mexicans dont want them in their system.
THEY ARE FORGOTTEN.
& THEY’RE NOT THE CAUSE OF THE MURDERS IN TIJUANA,
they are scapegoated by the US & Mexicans.
This has been in the American media, just no one cares.
The Mexicans know about it, but they have enough problems, & this one is too complexed to deal with, so they LITERALLY, are just building a fence on the other side of the Tijuana river, to keep the people………..in or out? My guess is in.
We are spending billions all over the world to "help" countries. Why don't we 1st help our neighbors.
Thats the REAL reality.
Jason